Who Really Oversees the Auditor—The Board or Management?

Summary

The study revisits how external auditors interact with audit committees (ACs) in today’s “mature” post–Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) environment, after major shifts in regulation, technology (data analytics/AI), and cybersecurity risk. The authors interviewed 21 highly experienced U.S. Big 4 audit partners (average 26.8 years of experience; most of their recent work with public- company clients) to understand what has changed—and what hasn’t—in auditor–AC oversight and communication.